


Iron(less) man

by Katerobber



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: 5+1, Drabble Sequence, Mystery, anemia, series of drabbles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-24
Updated: 2015-08-29
Packaged: 2018-04-17 02:29:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4648833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katerobber/pseuds/Katerobber
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something is strange about Tony and the other avengers start to notice. <br/>5+1 format</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Breathless

"Hey Stark I know that all you do is use the suit but really, it's only been like five minutes." Clint smirked as he leaned against the side of the boxing ring. 

"Just give me a few seconds birdbrain. We don't all have air sacs like you avians." The engineer leaned back onto his own side of the ring and heaved in a single gasping breath."You know what, I think I might have a renovation to make on the suit. I'll see you later Katniss." 

"What?" Clint glanced up and frowned. "But we just started." He looked a bit closer at the inventors pallor and parted mouth. "Are you alright?" 

"Never better but ideas don't wait." Tony tossed back over his shoulder as he strode out of the gym hiding the slight trip with an exaggerated turn into the elevator. 

"Weird geniuses." Clint muttered to the empty ring. "Here one minute gone the next."


	2. Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the inaccurate Chemistry

"Hey Tony you um may want to double check that formula." Bruce ventured from his place behind the scribbling genius. 

"Nah Brucie, I got this." Tony gestured wildly at the whiteboard explaining very messily/mathematically why with his exact calculations the two explosives liquids would not explode if poured together.

"Tony the sulfur unbalances the isotopes in the magnesium. This won't work." Bruce pointed to the slots where the two expressions fit rather awkwardly together. 

"No the Rutherford there balances." Tony picked up the vial with Bruce's worried face reflected in the glass. 

"Are you sure that's an R?" Bruce squinted at the heavily slanted writing as Tony waved nonchalantly.

"About 40 percent." The iron man made to pour the liquid into an already half full beaker only to be stopped by a calm hand on his wrist. For about a second. 

"Tony why is your skin freezing?" Bruce reached out to feel again, completely forgetting the experiment, but the engineer jerked away and placed the vial on a spare holder.

"You were right. That totally wasn't a R. I'll go rebalance it, bye" Tony turned sharply on a heel and and was in the elevator before Bruce could even speak.


	3. Excessive sleeping

"Stark, Stark wake up." Fury's one eye glared down at the sleeping avenger on the meeting table. 

"Five more minutes" Tony yawned. 

"No Stark. I will shut down your access to shield's tech system." Fury warned.

"You really can't do that but what'd I miss?" The still half asleep mumble was met by Clint's devious grin. 

"Not much," Clint shrugged, "just giant rabbits parading around New York with lasers." 

"what?" The genius picked his head up off the table and looked around for the piles of paperwork bound to come from sleeping through that. 

"Not really," Cap interjected, "but you did sleep through the entire security briefing. Are you okay?" 

"Just napping through the boring part. High school all over again." He flashed the stark grin to the furious face of Fury, the concerned blue eyes of Cap and the rest of the teams typical bored faces. 

"Tony you have to stay awake. This is actually serious." Steve did his best team leader voice and Tony yawned at him again. 

"You know speaking of that whole seriousness stuff I've got to get back to Pepper," 

"You're staying here." Fury scowled.

"Since When do you ever voluntary go to board meetings anyway, even for Pepper?" Clint asked from his perch on the back of a chair. 

"When you started sitting in a chair like a normal person, she just got back from Japan and promised to bring all sorts of candy back. So later" with that Tony pushed the chair back and sauntered out of the meeting room. 

"That could have gone better." Cap sighed.

Fury face palmed.


	4. Irritable

It was never good when a superhero stomped out of the elevator. It was really not good when that particular hero was Tony stark. 

"Where is the coffee?" He basically snarled to Bruce. 

"Same place it's always been beside the sink. Next to the coffee maker." Bruce didn't even have to look up. 

"What's your problem Stark? Wake up on the wrong side of the silk?" Clint called. 

The answer was a sharp growl. 

"Wow someone's grouchy this morning." The archer continued. 

"You know what I'm just going to take the coffee maker myself." The engineer snatched the appliance with one hand and the coffee grounds with the other and stormed back to the elevator. 

"what was that?" Cap asked the air. 

"It's only Monday" Bruce answered. 

They shared a collective sigh with Barton laughing in the background.


	5. Paleness

"How come your so pale Stark?" 

"How come your so annoying Barton?" Tony called to the archer hanging halfway out of the vent. 

"Are you trying to look like a vampire? Cause if you are great job. All you need now is the fangs and you'll really look it." 

"Says the guy who puts red syrup on his Cereal every morning." 

"Really is there any reason why your so pale? Besides being in here all day." 

"Dum-e I do believe that agent Barton is on fire. Please help him out." The engineer flashed a single grin to the archer and fled leaving Clint at the mercy of an overly enthusiastic, fire extinguisher wielding, robot.


	6. Iron less?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I frogot the mention earlier that thor is in Asgard and Natasha is on a misson. And I apologize if my medical info is a little bit wrong.

The red liquid sloshed against the glass walls of the syringe.

"J this the right amount?" Tony hardly needed to ask.

"You are correct Sir" the AI answered calmly. "But I must inform you that the other avengers in the building are approaching and will enter your room in approximately 2 seconds." 

"Just keep em out for a few minutes." The needle slid smoothly into the soft skin. 

"Sir the Captain insists on entering." Jarvis remarked. 

"Tell him I'm busy and that its my room." The scarlet liquid was only half way emptied. 

"Sir he is overriding." The voice cut off as the door slid open. 

"Hello trespassers." Tony called to the small crowd of shell shocked heroes. "If you would please go back to whatever it is you do." 

"Tony why didn't you tell us. We can help." Steve turned sad puppy eyes on the inventor. 

"Well I never picked you for drugs Stark." Clint shook his head. 

Bruce just looked on quizzically in the background. 

"It's not drugs all you dark minded people." The injection finished he placed the empty vial on the bedside table. 

"Technically that version of B12 and iron is a drug." Jarvis informed. 

"Not helping J." 

"Iron Tony? Isn't that for anemics?" Bruce spoke up. 

"Yes and it's pernicious anemia and iron deficiency. That's what the meds are for." Tony sat down on the bed. 

"That does explain a few things" Bruce looked thoughtful

"What?" 

"Well The paleness, exercise intolerance, and cold skin" 

"Excessive sleeping" Steve muttered.

"Maybe even the stealing of the coffee maker." Clint added. "But want to explain why this anemia thing explains it?" 

Tony shrugged, "I don't absorb nutrients as well as you do because of damage the first arc reactor caused. That causes that iron deficiency and the pernicious anemia. I take the injections so I don't just drop dead." 

"So the lack of iron and B12 causes all of that?" Steve turned to the genius. 

"Think we've been over this one Cap." Tony mouth twisted into a grin.

"And you don't have enough Iron?" Clint smirked. 

"Yes" Tony groaned knowing right where this was going. 

"So basically your an iron-less iron man?" 

Clint chuckled then Steve blushed and tried to stop it but soon the entire group was laughing fit to burst. 

"You know," Bruce stopped chortling, "you do have to explain this to Thor and Natasha when they get back." 

That started the laughing fresh again.


End file.
